Gillian Polack's Blog, page 155
August 31, 2012
gillpolack @ 2012-08-31T23:09:00
I have spent a couple of hours in the Middle Ages today, done my teaching prep for tomorrow, sent my first job application*, spent two hours on my dissertation (which is technically finished, but cleaning up is a forever-job), redeemed some promises, read half a book. I forget the rest. I did lots. I will do one more hour and then sleep, for tomorrow is bigger than today. It does, however include markets. As does Sunday.
Sunday includes markets and a friend, which is always a good combination. This means I shall start Spring off with far better food than I finished Winter, since it's largely been creative leftovers for days.
Whenever I go shopping right now I wince at the prices and only buy basics. For Sunday, I am not going to look at the prices, just for once. I am going to buy fresh produce, mostly straight from the farm or artisan. I'm hoping that lunch will be my favourite duck pate on my favourite Italian bread, with olives on the side and a nice salad of heritage vegies. We shall, however, see, for it depends on who is there.
*Don't get too excited. This could take a while. I'll update if anything major happens.
Sunday includes markets and a friend, which is always a good combination. This means I shall start Spring off with far better food than I finished Winter, since it's largely been creative leftovers for days.
Whenever I go shopping right now I wince at the prices and only buy basics. For Sunday, I am not going to look at the prices, just for once. I am going to buy fresh produce, mostly straight from the farm or artisan. I'm hoping that lunch will be my favourite duck pate on my favourite Italian bread, with olives on the side and a nice salad of heritage vegies. We shall, however, see, for it depends on who is there.
*Don't get too excited. This could take a while. I'll update if anything major happens.
August 30, 2012
gillpolack @ 2012-08-31T14:50:00
We have Weather. It started yesterday, in dribbles of change and today it's the cold end of Spring. Lots of wind and rain and aches. I'm 40% through my must-do-or-else-I-die-in-a-heap list anyway and intend to assist the rest along with much coffee and perhaps some panadeine.
Anyhow, Spring is coming to the southern hemisphere, just in case anyone was in doubt about it. I don't know if I'll resume my weather prediction service, but I can't help thinking that I should do a question and answer post just after Conflux. Conflux is a month away, so there's heaps of time for people to think up questions I can't answer.
A cousin has apparently just moved to Canberra. In fact, he is my stepfather's brother's grandson as well as being my great-uncle's great-nephew. He doesn't yet know me. I do hope, for his sake, that he has a sense of humour. His grandfather does. He and I huddle together with my uncle at family events and say things we really ought not say. I've messaged him on FB, and, just in case he's checking out his mysterious cousin, let me say "Hi Stefan" and "I'm a nice person, mostly."
Anyhow, Spring is coming to the southern hemisphere, just in case anyone was in doubt about it. I don't know if I'll resume my weather prediction service, but I can't help thinking that I should do a question and answer post just after Conflux. Conflux is a month away, so there's heaps of time for people to think up questions I can't answer.
A cousin has apparently just moved to Canberra. In fact, he is my stepfather's brother's grandson as well as being my great-uncle's great-nephew. He doesn't yet know me. I do hope, for his sake, that he has a sense of humour. His grandfather does. He and I huddle together with my uncle at family events and say things we really ought not say. I've messaged him on FB, and, just in case he's checking out his mysterious cousin, let me say "Hi Stefan" and "I'm a nice person, mostly."
gillpolack @ 2012-08-31T10:30:00
My little list says I have nine things that must be done and that most of them must be done by 3 pm. One of them, however, may have just been delayed by a week (problems with a computer's ability to talk to the net in the US). This means I have eight things and a sudden temptation to see if natural attrition takes all the others...
Also, I want to go back to sleep. This is because I've been writing/editing during the mornings and afternoons on Tuesday and Thursday and teaching in the morning and then editing on Wednesday late afternoon until late evening, and then doing other work on Tuesday and Thursday evening after teaching. Last week I couldn't work out why I am so exceptionally tired on Fridays, for six hours teaching is not a great deal. I wasn't counting the normal day's work on top of the teaching, however.
I suspect I need to warn people that I shan't be doing a normal day's work on top of Saturday's teaching. I shall blog and I shall deal with urgent email and I shall probably leave it at that. Which reminds me, I'm going all high tech tomorrow and need to prepare my projections onto a USB. It's going to be a lot easier to copy my whole picture library there than to sort through it in a measly fashion, for I shall need it again next week and at Conflux. This is because I shall be teaching writers how to shortcut research, for I am a strong believer that laziness (and I am naturally lazy) should never interfere with quality of background work.
Also, I want to go back to sleep. This is because I've been writing/editing during the mornings and afternoons on Tuesday and Thursday and teaching in the morning and then editing on Wednesday late afternoon until late evening, and then doing other work on Tuesday and Thursday evening after teaching. Last week I couldn't work out why I am so exceptionally tired on Fridays, for six hours teaching is not a great deal. I wasn't counting the normal day's work on top of the teaching, however.
I suspect I need to warn people that I shan't be doing a normal day's work on top of Saturday's teaching. I shall blog and I shall deal with urgent email and I shall probably leave it at that. Which reminds me, I'm going all high tech tomorrow and need to prepare my projections onto a USB. It's going to be a lot easier to copy my whole picture library there than to sort through it in a measly fashion, for I shall need it again next week and at Conflux. This is because I shall be teaching writers how to shortcut research, for I am a strong believer that laziness (and I am naturally lazy) should never interfere with quality of background work.
gillpolack @ 2012-08-30T21:44:00
Class was a lot of fun tonight. I made my students draw on butchers' paper. Getting students to shift their understanding of the environment around them and their current knowledge into world building potential is one of the things I love doing.
Now I have administrationish stuff for the rest of the evening. I want to read a book or watch a DVD, but all of these things have deadlines, for on Saturday I am teaching.
There are apparently a couple of places left in the class, so if anyone local to Canberra or able to get to Canberra has a vast urge to do a full day History for Fiction Writers workshop, with time at lunch to explore Gorman House Markets, you can find the details here: www.actwriters.org.au/events/upcoming...
Now I have administrationish stuff for the rest of the evening. I want to read a book or watch a DVD, but all of these things have deadlines, for on Saturday I am teaching.
There are apparently a couple of places left in the class, so if anyone local to Canberra or able to get to Canberra has a vast urge to do a full day History for Fiction Writers workshop, with time at lunch to explore Gorman House Markets, you can find the details here: www.actwriters.org.au/events/upcoming...
August 29, 2012
gillpolack @ 2012-08-30T11:30:00
Today is far too exciting. My computer decided it was on a go-slow and then it decided it wouldn't save any changes to documents. I sorted the final edits for yesterday's second article anyhow and improvised wildly and now both of the pieces I was working on yesterday are finally with editors, for good or ill.
I wanted to strangle my computer, but instead I rebooted. When I rebooted I discovered that the go-slow was due to Firefox updating yet again and orphaning bits of programs. Now the reboot has happened, those orphans have been disabled and I am back to normal work.
In the interstices, to make myself feel as if life was definitely under control, I've been reading The Modern Fae's Guide to Surviving Humanity. Interested parties need to know that I have been enjoying it a great deal.
That reminds me, the reason I needed to finish all my other work was that I have two short stories to write. I think I've lost that time for today, unfortunately, and am back in PhDland for the next two hours. After that it's job application land, and after that, it's teaching.
Today is not busy. It's calm and placid and peaceful and rather sleepy. And one of those descriptors is actually true.
I wanted to strangle my computer, but instead I rebooted. When I rebooted I discovered that the go-slow was due to Firefox updating yet again and orphaning bits of programs. Now the reboot has happened, those orphans have been disabled and I am back to normal work.
In the interstices, to make myself feel as if life was definitely under control, I've been reading The Modern Fae's Guide to Surviving Humanity. Interested parties need to know that I have been enjoying it a great deal.
That reminds me, the reason I needed to finish all my other work was that I have two short stories to write. I think I've lost that time for today, unfortunately, and am back in PhDland for the next two hours. After that it's job application land, and after that, it's teaching.
Today is not busy. It's calm and placid and peaceful and rather sleepy. And one of those descriptors is actually true.
gillpolack @ 2012-08-30T08:47:00
I've encountered a great deal of language misuse this week. I wanted to rant and rend my garments and tear my hair out, but I've thought better of it. This is not only because I value my hair, but also because I rather suspect I've been equally guilty of small misuses that annoy.
Then, of course, I encounter the angry people who want to change the world through giving it regular public scoldings. Being angry is a stage in personal realisation and growth. We take on major issues personally that way (I say this from profound experience). It seldom changes the world around us unless we transform the anger into a bunch of other things (persuasion, temptation to work or think differently, new opportunities, deep worldwide enlightenment - that sort of thing's a start).
I do understand the need for so many of us to get angry at first, for the hearts of the angry souls are pure and our causes righteous. It's an important step on the path of identifying wrongs and finding just solutions and etc (especially and etc - one thing I always discover is that the 'and etc' is very complex - one of the most unjust people I know can't be educated out of it for that education will hurt a bunch of people who have done absolutely nothing wrong and will result in a mess that's damaging all round).
If the anger keeps being shouted in public as if it's new; if the learning is never undertaken; if the angry person never moves on, then that's a sad waste of a good person's energy*.
So instead of ranting (much) I shall do some work. Also, I shall drink tea, for tea is soothing...
*I can't seem to lose my anger at three people, so I'm speaking from experience. While I hang onto the anger I can't move on and while it's just anger at my end and not solutions, neither can they.
Then, of course, I encounter the angry people who want to change the world through giving it regular public scoldings. Being angry is a stage in personal realisation and growth. We take on major issues personally that way (I say this from profound experience). It seldom changes the world around us unless we transform the anger into a bunch of other things (persuasion, temptation to work or think differently, new opportunities, deep worldwide enlightenment - that sort of thing's a start).
I do understand the need for so many of us to get angry at first, for the hearts of the angry souls are pure and our causes righteous. It's an important step on the path of identifying wrongs and finding just solutions and etc (especially and etc - one thing I always discover is that the 'and etc' is very complex - one of the most unjust people I know can't be educated out of it for that education will hurt a bunch of people who have done absolutely nothing wrong and will result in a mess that's damaging all round).
If the anger keeps being shouted in public as if it's new; if the learning is never undertaken; if the angry person never moves on, then that's a sad waste of a good person's energy*.
So instead of ranting (much) I shall do some work. Also, I shall drink tea, for tea is soothing...
*I can't seem to lose my anger at three people, so I'm speaking from experience. While I hang onto the anger I can't move on and while it's just anger at my end and not solutions, neither can they.
gillpolack @ 2012-08-29T19:00:00
I ought to be in between tasks, but I still have references to fix, a bibliography to achieve and an abstract to write. I'm seriously thinking of writing something both easier and more urgent during my break, for otherwise the minutiae will frustrate me beyond bearing. This is not for the dissertation, you see, and it's not for a wider audience and yet it takes triple the time of anything else. Also, I want to write fiction. I just do. My brain is configured for fiction tonight, not footnotes.
End of microbreak - back to formatting.
End of microbreak - back to formatting.
August 28, 2012
gillpolack @ 2012-08-29T13:09:00
My Wednesday class is - as ever - wonderful. One of my students asked me on the way to the bus how on earth I managed to teach different things every week for seven years. I was a t a loss to answer, for today we spent 40 minutes looking at prefixes and suffices and examining the structure of 'antidisestablishmentarianism' as we've done several times. It appears that even when I teach the same subject (for there are new students and the basics must be covered) they appear to be new and different. This is either very, very good or very, very bad.
The rest of today is all the stuff I didn't do earlier in the week. By tomorrow I shall be entirely up to date, largely through lack of choice. It's about eight hours of work, so it should be possible, however, I'm going to hedge my bets by taking my time out now, so I start the eight hours rested. I don't get my coffee until then, either, so it's all carefully planned. One cup of coffee at the beginning of each of the biggest tasks and no cheating in search of extra caffeine by dodging between tasks. Dinner is mostly cooked. Teaching for tomorrow is half-prepared. In other words, no excuses!
The rest of today is all the stuff I didn't do earlier in the week. By tomorrow I shall be entirely up to date, largely through lack of choice. It's about eight hours of work, so it should be possible, however, I'm going to hedge my bets by taking my time out now, so I start the eight hours rested. I don't get my coffee until then, either, so it's all carefully planned. One cup of coffee at the beginning of each of the biggest tasks and no cheating in search of extra caffeine by dodging between tasks. Dinner is mostly cooked. Teaching for tomorrow is half-prepared. In other words, no excuses!
gillpolack @ 2012-08-28T22:34:00
My typing is still astray. Expect more fascinating typos for a couple of days. This is because my breathing is astray. It's why I'm choosing my tasks with great care.
I knew I had a bit of a cough, but I didn't realise it was an asthmatic one until I read my recent posts and was entertained by the typos. Medicine has been increased and proper exercises completed (with - alas - more planned) and in 24 hours those typos will diminish. Until then, enjoy the unexpected!
ETA: I just checked the local news. The need to burn off potential fire hazards every weekend (and now on weekdays) is the cause of the asthma. This is why it looks as if I'm never well. This year the ACT Government is preparing for bushfires by burning off so often that there is smoke in the air almost all the time. I am sensitive to smoke. So, more asthma medication is already underway, but it appears I might need other medicine as well. Also, an annoying level of patience.
Anyhow, at least this means that I totally must not run any messages tomorrow or Thursday. Not running messages will give me more time to catch up with stuff *and* more breath to use in the catching. Bargain!
I knew I had a bit of a cough, but I didn't realise it was an asthmatic one until I read my recent posts and was entertained by the typos. Medicine has been increased and proper exercises completed (with - alas - more planned) and in 24 hours those typos will diminish. Until then, enjoy the unexpected!
ETA: I just checked the local news. The need to burn off potential fire hazards every weekend (and now on weekdays) is the cause of the asthma. This is why it looks as if I'm never well. This year the ACT Government is preparing for bushfires by burning off so often that there is smoke in the air almost all the time. I am sensitive to smoke. So, more asthma medication is already underway, but it appears I might need other medicine as well. Also, an annoying level of patience.
Anyhow, at least this means that I totally must not run any messages tomorrow or Thursday. Not running messages will give me more time to catch up with stuff *and* more breath to use in the catching. Bargain!
gillpolack @ 2012-08-28T21:13:00
I told my class this evening that they were too quiet. They're a very thinking class - their faces are alive. I have to push them to talk, though.
When they don't talk, they get Gillian focussing on her favourite topics. This doesn't seem to be a problem. I do think I might have given them nightmares tonight, for amidst technical discussion of comparative cosmology and of the Somnium Scipionis and of medical theory, I managed to sneak in ghost stories and eerie Arthurian tidbits and (of course) Hellequin's Hunt.
I will know how many nightmares I gave when they return next week. If my students are full of questions, it will be to save themselves by being led into strange places again. Mind you, strange places are inevitable next week, for we are focusing on French political history.
Watch this space.
When they don't talk, they get Gillian focussing on her favourite topics. This doesn't seem to be a problem. I do think I might have given them nightmares tonight, for amidst technical discussion of comparative cosmology and of the Somnium Scipionis and of medical theory, I managed to sneak in ghost stories and eerie Arthurian tidbits and (of course) Hellequin's Hunt.
I will know how many nightmares I gave when they return next week. If my students are full of questions, it will be to save themselves by being led into strange places again. Mind you, strange places are inevitable next week, for we are focusing on French political history.
Watch this space.
